How to Make Eggshell Tea for Your Plants

Before you read any further, I am not nuts! You will love using this tea… for your plants! That is to say, we are talking about eggshell fertilizer tea.

Eggshells are often used for the sharp edges to keep snails out of gardens, but this humble kitchen scrap is worth much more than just a guard dog for snails and slugs. Even leaving eggshells on the soil around plants can be helpful.

However, you will not get the very best out of the eggshells unless you crush them properly and make what is known as eggshell tea.

Much lab research has gone into studying the impact of using eggshell tea (also referred to as eggshell dust tea) to improve plant quality, and the results have been astounding.

Crushing the eggshells makes them decompose, and release all the valuable nutrients faster.

Eggshell tea will:

• Supply calcium
• Supply potassium
• Raise the pH value of alkaline soil
• Raise the pH value of neutral soil
• Help the roots of plants to absorb calcium
• Cure short roots
• Improve the quality of fruit and vegetables
• Strengthen cell wall structures
• Strengthen plants
• Fight diseases
• Protect plants from heat stress
• Increase drought tolerance
• Improve color of fruit
• Improve photosynthesis
• Improve stem strength
• Regulate water absorption
• Prevent blossom end rot

This innovative liquid fertilizer is a cheap, easy way to protect your plants from calcium deficiency, and let them flourish, and it is so easy to make!

Nutrition

Every eggshell contains 2.2 grams of calcium in the form of calcium carbonate. To put that into perspective, that is twice as much calcium as an adult person needs in a day.

Eggshells also contain phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, iron, sodium, zinc, copper, and manganese, all of which are valuable to the daily nutrition of plants.

Why Make Eggshell Tea

Using water as the medium to pass along the nutrition is a quick way to supply plants with a boost. Best of all, it is a clean, organic way to supply nutrients to your soil and plants.

By boiling powdered eggshells and then leaving them in the water for 24 hours, the eggshell will release more nutrients into the water.

If your soil is very acidic or neutral, eggshell tea can raise the pH balance. Alkaline soil will also benefit from eggshell tea as it will help the roots absorb calcium.

If you are keen on growing tomatoes, blossom end rot is probably a never-ending plague to you.

Blossom end rot are those unsightly spots that develop on the fruit and look like a bug drove through on a semi-truck.

Eggplants and peppers also are often the victims of blossom end rot. Eggshell tea is very beneficial to prevent blossom end rot from cropping up.

Plants like cauliflower, broccoli, spinach, Swiss chard, and amaranth are high in calcium, adding eggshell tea can boost the calcium value.

How to Make Eggshell Tea

1. Clean and dry 10 to 20 eggshells; the more shells you use the stronger the solution will be (for potted plants use 2 to 3 eggshells)

2. Crush the eggshells into a fine powdery texture (crushing them with a mortar and pestle, in a coffee grinder, using a rolling pin, or food processor is quick and easy)

3. Boil the crushed eggshells at 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175 Celsius) in a gallon of water for 35 to 45 minutes

4. Stir every 10 to 15 minutes.

5. Leave the eggshells in the boiled water for 24 hours

6. Strain the water.

7. Spray or use a watering can to water your plants close to the base of the plant directly on the soil

8. Repeat either weekly, or every 2 weeks

Tips

If you do not feel like making eggshell tea, crush the eggshells and mix them into the soil.

Do not throw out the powder when you strain the tea. Take the residue, and sprinkle it in your flower beds.

Use fewer eggshells in the same amount of water for pot plants.

Collect the eggshells from every egg you use through winter so that you will be able to make plenty of eggshell tea for spring. Remember to clean and dry them properly before you add them to your storage container with other shells.

Do not use eggshells if you are making compost. They will rot, and can carry diseases into the soil and your fruit and vegetables.

Many master gardeners raise the value of eggshell tea by adding coffee grounds when making eggshell tea.

Conclusion

It is so easy to make eggshell tea and your plants will love a cuppa.

If you are looking for a cheap easy garden remedy, eggshell tea is one of the best because it rejuvenates the soil and improves the quality of fruit and vegetables.

The results of using eggshells will be visible, and your fruit and veggies will taste sublime. So, get to it! Enjoy a cup of tea while you cook your eggshell tea.